Time to reconcile conflict and collaboration—some insights from mediation | Blog by Andrea Westall
As we move ever closer to 2030 – the arbitrary endpoint for the collectively agreed UN Sustainable Development Goals – and in a year when the commitments of the climate negotiations at the 2021 UN Climate Change Conference, COP26 will need to be further strengthened,...
Designing for impact: the next stage for climate assemblies| Blog by Graham Smith
If the recent COP26 tells us anything, it’s that different ways of making hard decisions about our shared futures are needed. Too often critical decisions are made through last minute compromises, hammered out amongst small groups of negotiators behind closed doors,...
Beyond COP26: what next on Scotland’s sustainable development journey? | Blog by Paul Bradley
Living in Glasgow has been a somewhat surreal experience in recent weeks. The sounds of megaphones, police horses, and helicopters have been prominent in daily life. World leaders have come and gone, having spent an evening at my local museum. Hundreds of police lined...
Launch of new report and ICEN network on climate engagement
The Morris J. Wosk Centre for Dialogue at Simon Fraser University in Canada has published the report Can Public Participation Accelerate the Transition to Net-Zero?: Innovations and Challenges for Advancing the Field of Climate Engagement. The report aims to inspire...
Knowledge Network on Climate Assemblies (KNOCA) launched
The European Climate Foundation has launched the Knowledge Network on Climate Assemblies (KNOCA) as a ‘go to’ place for those seeking considered, rigorous and widely-sourced input on the design and implementation of climate assemblies. FDSD’s own Professor Graham...
FDSD welcomes UK Climate Assembly
FDSD has long supported the wider use of participatory and deliberative processes such as citizens’ assemblies in bringing the voice of citizens into political decision making. We are therefore delighted that the first weekend of the UK Climate Assembly has been a...
Citizens’ assemblies: how to bring the wisdom of the public to bear on the climate emergency | Blog by Graham Smith
Citizens’ assemblies could be vital in kick-starting the tough steps needed to respond to the climate emergency, Chair of the FDSD board of trustees, Graham Smith, argues. But the detail of how they will work is critical. (This blog first appeared on The Conversation...
Extinction Rebellion and democratic renewal—Blog by Graham Smith
2018 witnessed the emergence of a dynamic, new climate change movement—Extinction Rebellion (XR). Building chapters around the UK, Europe and across the world, XR’s most visible action was its day of mass civil disobedience in November, with 6,000 activists shutting...
Citizens, participation and the economy | Interim report from the RSA Citizen’s Economic Council
There are many reasons why more democratic and deliberative approaches to economics are necessary and valuable: shaping better and more informed economic decisions, promoting transparency over economic priorities, and strengthening the quality of democracy and public...
Harnessing democracy and engagement for sustainable prosperity
As environmental crises become ever more severe, voices are reappearing that call for authoritarian solutions: Democracy, so the argument goes, has proven to be too slow to respond to urgent threats, and so a stronger, authoritarian hand is needed to push through the...Sign up for newsletter
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